Sly Cooper & The Lomasi Kiwidinok
by TheGrudge154
Summary: Sly is back on a new adventure to find an ancient artefact. An object that even his ancestors couldn't steal. A gem that houses powerful and terrible abilites. A treasure which may give Sly the chance to see someone dear to him one more time. Please R&R!
1. Prologue

**Sly Cooper & The Lomasi Kiwidinok**

_It has been said that there have been many treasures all around the world which were snatched from the greedy palms of notorious criminals and lawbreakers by the Cooper family line. From the earliest days of Slytankhamen II to the late days of my own father, Conner Cooper, all the most valuable gems, coins and artefacts were stolen from the unworthy and placed deep within the Cooper Vault. It was the way it had always been and nothing had been too much of a challenge for any Cooper to handle. _

_Except for one. An object that so far had eluded the chambers of the Cooper Vault for as long as the Thievius Raccoonus has been written in. And that particular object presented me with one of the greatest thieving and personal challenges I would ever face._

_But, the story doesn't begin with me. Instead, it starts with my right hand man and technical genius in the middle of devising plans for yet another of his inventions..._

The pencil scribbled all over the paper like some sort of insect leaving behind a graphite trail wherever it tread. It corrected numbers, added extra measurements and notes and was even flipped upside down to correct a mistake with it's eraser. It was then tossed aside for a minute as it's user rubbed his eyes and let out a yawn. Bentley, former member of the Cooper Gang and all round braniac, was tired. Really tired. It was true what they said about time flying when you were having fun as Bentley hadn't even realised that it was morning until a few minutes ago. Although many would see writing up plans for various machines and devices boring and rather pointless, it was Bentley's favourite pastime. Especially now that one of his biggest projects had hit a snag.

Shortly after the heist on the Cooper Vault, he and Penelope (his rather lovely girlfriend, if he did say so himself) has begun work on a time machine and, for a while, it was going just fine. The on-board rift stabilisers were online, the computers were doing all of their calculations as they should, things were looking optimistic. Unfortunately, the testing didn't go just as well and caused the machine to break down just as it was about to initiate travel. Until they fixed it there wasn't really a lot for Bentley and Penelope to do. So, Bentley simply did what he did best.

Even though Penelope had long since gone to bed, Bentley had stayed up all night devising new plans for devices and machines that were now strangely reminiscent of his previous plans for the gang. He glanced over at the previous plans he had drawn before and sighed. All of them were similar to gadgets he had made for the gang during the thieving days. And, looking at those plans, he realised that part of him wasn't ready to give that life up. Not yet, anyway. Whilst he was still perfectly happy with Penelope and being able to let his brain come up with brand new ideas for various different fields, he missed the adventures he had had when the gang was all together. He shook his head to get rid of those negative thoughts and was about to pick up his pencil again when...

BANG!

A big noise from across the room almost made Bentley jump out his shell. The turtle turned his head in the direction of the sound when it sounded again. Bentley sighed when he realised it was just someone knocking the door, just unusually and particularly hard. He wheeled himself over to the door and opened it slowly, the big oak frame creaking as it went. He was greeted unexpectedly by a rather large pink figure in a pilot's cap looming over him and smiling broadly.

"I, uh, hope you don't mind me making an unannounced visit..." said Murray with a grin.

"Oh, it's fine Murray, it's good to see you! Though, I would appreciate it if you didn't bang the door so hard next time..." Bentley said, moving out of the way for Murray to come in.

"Come on Bentley. You should know how powerful _The Murray_ is by now!" bellowed Murray as he came in "So, how're things around here?"

"They're good. Whilst we have hit a little snag on the time machine, Penelope and myself have been doing a lot of different little projects together. It's really rewarding when you figure out the correct sequence of algorithms to make the specified computer program finish executing it's sub-routine so that the generators can..."

Bentley paused when he noticed that Murray had a blank look on his face. He chuckled.

"In short, it's fun"

"Great to hear, pal!" Murray exclaimed "You should see how I'm doing in the racing championships. It's been tough, but the ol' girl's still got it and we just keep crushing the competition! We're #2 in the league already"

"Sounds very promising for you then, Murray" Bentley said "Uh, would you like anything to..."  
"Glad you asked!" interrupted Murray "Haven't eaten in _so long_!"

Bentley simply smiled to himself, imagining what Murray's definition of 'so long' was, as he wheeled over to the kitchen and grabbed a few bags of potato chips, tossing them over to Murray. Murray himself sat down next to Bentley's work station and glanced over the plans he'd been writing.

"Hey, are these..."

"...plans for thieving devices? Yes, they are...I have to admit Murray that I'm just still getting used to the idea of not hanging around together anymore, you know?"

Murray felt the same.

"I will say that it's a little weird, being by yourself after so long. But, in the end, it's worth it. I mean, we both have whole new lives to deal with. Besides, we're both having fun, right?"

"Yeah, you're probably right" Bentley said with a slight grin "I mean, I haven't even told you about the free energy machine we're working on right...."

"B......ey, do......py?"

Bentley stopped in his tracks.

"Did you hear that, Murray?"

"Hear what?" Murray said with a mouthful of chips.

"Listen!"

There was a slight noise that resembled static, the occasional small blip coming from within it. It seemed to be emanating from Bentley's old bag, hung lazily over a chair.

"Oh, must be the radio" Bentley deduced "Must've knocked the on switch in my way over to the kitchen. I'll just switch it off"

Before he could do so, another sound came from the radio.

"Be.....y, come i.....y! Do you....y?"

Murray was intrigued. So much so that he dropped his chips and went over to Bentley to see what it was.

"Someone's trying to use the radio!" Bentley exclaimed "Maybe if I boost the signal a little we can find out who wants our attention..." he murmured to himself, flipping over the radio and taking the back apart to fiddle around with the wires. The sound began to become clearer and clearer until...

"...peat, Bentley, do you copy? Bentley!!"

Both Murray and Bentley froze for a few seconds as they realised who the voice belonged to. Suddenly, the hippo grabbed the radio in a frenzy to respond.

"Sly! Sly, is that you?"

"Murray? Didn't expect to hear you on this thing...uh, how you been?" the voice replied, as the sound of a gunshot suddenly blasted out from the speaker.

"Never mind that now!" Bentley yelled "What in Clockwerk's name are you doing on this frequency?!"

"What does it sounds like, I'm talking to you! I'm under fire right now but I'm hiding out where they can't see me...look, where are you?"

"Who can't see you? Under fire?" Bentley asked "What the heck happened?"

Funny things happen when something doesn't go according to plan. It's also funny to think that I'd somehow gone from having a peaceful existence in Paris to suddenly being fired at by the police. To explain it, I should probably fill you in on the details between here and now.

It all started way back on Dr. Ms island, right after I took the hit for Carmelita.

It was shortly after I had said my words to Dr. M, about being my own person and not just another thief. I realised that maybe I could make things work between my and Carmelita, even if it would involve a little...'dishonesty'. As part of thar little plan I'd thought of at that minute, I managed to escape the island with Carmelita in a police chopper, faking that I'd lost my memory. I took extra care to leave the note for the guys to find. I thought I should let them know where I was, at the least.

On the way back, Carmelita started inventing stories about how we'd been police partners for over 6 years and the daring rescues we'd been in bringing criminals to justice to fill me in on what I couldn't 'remember'. Whilst she was being over dramatic in some respects, I was still surprised she was telling me all this, the story of 'Constable Cooper"'. I mean, I'd heard her say I'd be a good cop once, but I didn't expect her to want me on her side this much.

Yep, she totally likes me.

After an uneventful journey to Paris, her boss didn't really like the sight of me in a police station unrestrained, but was even more suspicious of the fact that I hadn't attempted to escape or steal anything that looked valuable. Carmelita explained the situation to him, although his wrinkled features still didn't seem convinced. It looked like I'd have to play up my role quite a bit in order to make him believe I really had no idea who I was. And so it was with that I became the fantasy Carmelita had imagined up in a few seconds. Constable Cooper, cop extraordinaire.

I know, doesn't suit me at all, does it?

I had to keep this guise up for over a month and it was weird seeing how the other side of the coin operate. But, I knew it was worth it because, in the end, I'd get to start something with Carmelita. It started slow at first, the occasional undercover party at first (not exactly everyone's idea of a first date, I admit) before we started going to places off duty too. Clubs, restaurants, the city...we even danced together at her Paris apartment one night as well (although this time, she actually knew it was me she was dancing with)! And, whilst the actual police work sucked, being with her was...well, part of the plan. I started to think that maybe this was how I should live life now. My family's legacy had been passed on to Bentley and I knew he would keep it safe for me. Maybe the Cooper line didn't have to continue to become thieves anymore. Maybe they could simply become the stuff of legend, nothing more than stories. And yet...there was still a part of me that missed roaming the rooftops at night, stealing from criminal masterminds and evading the watchful eye of the cops. It was exhilarating, exciting, not to mention fun. And, even though spending time with Carmelita was probably better than any treasure I could steal, she always seemed to put her work and the 'pursuit of justice' before anything personal, like our relationship. I remember saying to myself once in the old days that, even if things could be different between us, playing cops and robbers was always more fun. In short, I was starting to have doubts on whether my plan was the right choice after all.

But, that all's gone out of the window now. You're probably wanting to know how I had managed to have the police on my tail and firing at me, despite having worked with them for over a month as one of them, right? Well, it all started I was at my own apartment just letting my mind wander as I gazed out over Paris at night. That was when Carmelita knocked and told me about a case we'd be assigned to. I went with her to the scene of an apparent break in, an old antiques shop. It all looked like something a lowly thug would do. Forced entry through the front door, vases smashed open in an attempt to find what they were looking for, smashed the glass at the front of the shop to escape...

Seriously, I could have done better blindfolded! At least I wouldn't leave so much mess behind.

Anyway, it was amongst the shattered glass and ruined artefacts that I noticed something which caught my eye. It was small piece of parchment, brown and dirty for years of ageing. It was torn at one edge and completely straight at the other, almost like it was from a book page. Some sort of symbol was visible behind it's text and the text itself only had a few words on it, words I couldn't even begin to pronounce. But I didn't really need to read it, I would recognise this thing anywhere. Somehow, this small piece of seemingly insignificant paper was from The Thievius Raccoonus! But, why was it there? That was a mystery to me. I knew the book was with Bentley, and he certainly hadn't been in Paris recently, at least not to my knowledge. So what was it doing in the middle of a antiques break in?

I heard Carmelita talking with the other officers. She said that although it was out of the regular style, the break in had similar traits to the string of burglaries that had been plaguing Paris for over a week. I'd read into the police files out of curiosity about the cases earlier in the week. Strangely, each 'robbery' hadn't technically stolen anything. They'd just smashed the place up a bit. But each one had destroyed the places specifically looking for something. This one was the first to have something actually taken, but many of the elements were the same.

I quickly snatched the page fragment from the glass. I knew it was against police conduct to take evidence from a crime scene, but I couldn't let them see it, not even a peek. Knowing the police, they'd suspect it was me who committed the break in the moment they saw it and I knew Carmelitas boss was still hoping for a way to get me off the force...he soon got one.

It was late night at the police station. Everyone else had gone off their shift, except for the Chief, who was still working on something in the lab. Luckily for me, his office was empty and it was then I took the opportunity to...forcefully enter the room. It felt like such a rush, getting back into the thieving business after being away from it for so long. Despite this, I knew I had to be quiet. One false move and I'd be caught for sure. Not thieving in such a while made me a little rusty, which only seemed to make me more nervous! That wasn't going to help.

After I'd picked the lock, I opened the Chief's desk and took out some folders that were inside. I spread them out over the desk, scanning them over to try and find any hints at all. I checked all the break-in files, anything mentioning the Thievius Raccoonus. Nothing came up. I was about to leave it and call it a night when one little thing caught my eye. That one little thing was the repetition of a name, the name I couldn't pronounce from the Raccoonus page. It was there in every file, the same two words repeated over and over. From being mentioned in intercepted radio transmissions, to notes left behind at the break-in. It was there. I had to see Bentley and ask him about this. If my family was involved whatever it was these guys were talking about, then I wanted to get it sorted out. Unfortunately for me, the Chief took that moment to walk into his office...

"COOPER!! What the hell are you doing in my office?!"

"S-Sir, it's not what it looks like, I was just..."  
"You're reading reports for my eyes only! What do you think it looks like?!"  
"Please, sir! I just wanted to..."  
"To...what, Constable?"

I struggled for an answer. All I could make were strange noises that were supposed to be words but didn't come out whole. And it all got worse when he noticed the Raccoonus page in my hand.

"What's that? Let me see it!" he roared, hand outstretched. He then retracted it back when he saw the insignia of Cooper on the edge. I gulped as I saw the vein on his forehead throb.

"Cooper...you no good...THIEF!!"he yelled, whipping out his gun in the process.

"No, you got it wrong! I'm not steali...Ahhh!"

I gasped as I felt a bullet whiz past my ear and hit the far wall. The guy was furious!

"I want additional units here now, we have a break-in! It's Cooper!" the Chief screamed into his radio. Something told me that now was the time to run.

And so, there you have it. From finding one little similarity in some files to being shot at by around 10 police officers. Pinned down in an alley, no real things to climb on and make an escape, things looked bad. I'd managed to contact Bentley, but it was only for a few short minutes before he just suddenly cut off. I peeper my head around the edge of the dumpster I was hiding against, only to pull it back almost immediately when more gunfire came my way. I started thinking about Carmelita...what would she be thinking right now? Would she follow what her Chief would inevitably tell her and start playing cat and mouse with me again? Would she think I vanished into thin air, killed in action, gone missing? The possibilities swirled around my head...I suppose I wouldn't be certain until I saw her next. And, painfully, that seemed like a long way off. That was until a voice suddenly called down to me from above.

"Sly, come on! We don't have much time!" yelled Bentley, gesturing a "get a move on" sign to me. How he'd gotten to me so quick was beyond me, but I'd stopped questioning how Bentley works long ago. I looked around around the dumpster again. The police, their cars and barriers were all shrouded in a thick black smoke. I could barely make out the lights it was so thick! A rope then fell to my left. Realising the smoke was a distraction, I grabbed onto it, climbing up to the roof of the building as quick as I could. They were still trying to shoot at me on the way up, but I managed to clamber up to the top. We broke into a run, leaving the cops in the dust (and smoke).

"What the heck was that?" I shouted to Bentley.

"Smoke bomb! Brand new! Hadn't had a chance to test it yet...look, we need to keep moving, it doesn't last long!"

As Bentley guided me to the van, I could faintly hear the Chief screaming at me in frustration. Sure, it wasn't Carmelita shouting it, but it had a certain...nostalgic quality to it. I could help but smile a little.

We managed to clamber into the van where Murray was already waiting for us. I'm surprised he didn't jam the accelerator to the floor as we shot off into the distance.

After we drove for a while, we came to a stop in the car park of a fast food joint that just happened to be there. It was...awkward to say the least. We just sat there in silence, unsure of what to say to one another. We'd been apart for so long, it felt a little strange to be re-united, especially under the circumstances. Murray broke the silence by grabbing myself and Bentley and practically crushing us beneath his arms.

"Aw, come on, don't just sit there! We're back as a team again!"

Murray always did have the biggest heart and it didn't seem like that had changed.

"It's not like I didn't miss you too, big guy" I said with a smile as he let us go "I'm just thankful you managed to get me in time"

"That makes 3 of us! Good thing you still had the frequency remembered..." Bentley said with a sigh "I take it your little scheme for Carmelitas affections went well? Up until now, that is..."

"Sort of..." I replied, rubbing the back of my head "I did have a few close calls where I was almost rumbled and..."  
"For calculus's sake Sly..." Bentley interrupted "I know that you have a habit of executing daring plans, but don't you think this was a bit sudden? I mean, we searched for you for hours before you knew you'd jetted off to Paris! If we hadn't had found your notes, we would have assumed..."

He paused and lowered his head a little. It was then that I realised just how thoughtless my plan had been when it started. These two had helped me amass a large gang to help me get to what was rightfully mine, risking life and limb just for my sake. They deserved better than a simple note.

"I'm sorry" I said "I didn't mean to..."

"Oh, forget it, pal" Bentley said "The important thing is that you're alright. And we don't blame you for your plan, we can both see that you like Inspector Fox a lot"

"Yeah, so don't worry about it, 'kay? Besides, we're back as a team again! How AWESOME is that?!" Murray yelled. I chuckled as Murray grabbed me again, rubbing his knuckle against my head.

Soon, it was just like old times. We got something quick from the fast food place and I told the guys all sorts stories of my time in the police force, the crimes we solved and all the bad guys I personally got to throw in jail as we ate. Bentley told me all about Penelope and his time machine and Murray told me all about the racing championships. Seemed like my pals were managing fine without me. I then told them about the Raccoonus page, of the words inscribe on it. Bentley peered at it, adjusting his glasses as he moved it around.

"Interesting...it appears to be of an old dialect, that much I'm certain of. As for what it means, I'll have to research it further..."

"Bentley, listen. You've already done enough for the sake of me and my family. I'm just curious that's all, and I'd much rather be making it up to you both for just leaving"

"No no, Sly. We've always supported each other over the years and that's not going to change now! It's not like we hate you for leaving, you had your own reasons" he answered with a nod "Besides, this mystery may give me a chance to work on some new thieving devices for you to use..."

"Yeah, baby! Another adventure for the Cooper Gang!" Murray suddenly bellowed with a laugh. I smiled and actually found myself returning a little of Murray's 'hug'. Sure, life with Carmelita had been great, but I really felt a deeper connection with these two. Besides, living with them meant I didn't have to hide my true colours for the sake of a 'plan'.

After we parked up near Bentley's house, a few miles away in fact, everyone was asleep inside the van. Except for me. Those words on the Raccoonus page...what were they? Why were they important and how were the culprits of the break-in connected?

Seems my plans with Carmelita will have to wait until I got to the bottom of this.


	2. Cuba: Part Uno

**Sly Cooper & The Lomasi Kiwidinok**

Chapter 1: Cuba Part Uno

The door creaked open as we arrived back at Bentley's place. It was early morning and we were all still a little sleepy, but that wouldn't stop Bentley getting straight to work on his research. In no time at all he was on his computer, scanning in the page fragment and getting straight down to business. His fingers dashed all over the keyboard as they checked, cross-referenced and did some other computer stuff I don't even know the meaning of. Murray and I sat there, playing video games whilst Bentley worked on it, going well out his way just for the sake of my curiosity. Whilst I was grateful, I knew he didn't have to be doing this for me. And besides, I wasn't even sure if he'd found any answers until, a few hours later...

"Success!"

I jerked upwards as Bentley's exclamation from my short nap. I looked over and saw Murray standing next to Bentley as they looked at the screen.

"What is it? You got something, pal?" I asked as I went over to his computer.

"Uh, it's sort of a weird phrase that Bentley hasn't been able to describe to me yet...but it sounds pretty cool!" Murray exclaimed.

"In other terms..." Bentley interrupted "I've managed to obtain some information on the references to this weird dialect on the page. Particularly this one term that even I can't seem to understand the context of! I don't even know if it's a name, a place or a..."

"Look, just tell me what you have Bentley. After all, I'm only curious. I don't need a full on explanation of everything on that page and whatever little you have it good enough" I said with a smile.

"Right, of course..." he said, straightening his glasses as he peered at the screen. "According to my analysis, the page makes numerous references to a Native American phrase, pronounced 'Lomasi Kiwidinok'. Literally translated it means 'Flower of the Wind', but as to what it means in this fragment, I'm uncertain. The text around it seems to suggest something being hidden, but there's no way to tell what it means."

"So, we've got a Native American set of words and something being hidden...I don't get it" Murray concluded.

Just like Murray, I was confused at what this all meant, but I trusted Bentley's word in the past so I would believe him now.

"Are you sure there's nothing else?"  
"From what I've been able to gather of the term, Lomasi Kiwidinok is the same name as that of an ancient Native American artefact, a gemstone supposedly bestowed with 'supernatural abilities'. There's no details on what those abilities are from my research, but if it's the same thing, it'll be worth a fortune nowadays!"

"And somehow, this gemstone is related to my family line?" I asked, puzzled.

"From the evidence provided, I think it's safe to conclude that they are connected. But, without the full page, it's unclear how deep that connection is".

I nodded and paused for a moment to think of my next question. All this new information was muddling up my thoughts. "Have you been able to find out anything about the break-ins back in Paris?"  
"I thought you'd ask that, so I did some more research on it. Turns out that each of these break-ins has the same _modus operandi _as some break-ins commited by a criminal gang that's sprung up over the past few months".

I grinned. Seems like Bentley had still kept up with the thieving world in my absence.

"Who are they?" Murray asked as he scoffed a hot dog noisily besides me.

"They're known only as the Syndicate. They've pulled off some major jobs, even taken over whole industries in certain areas of the world, each area having one key member in control. As the method of entry and exits are the same, it's safe to assume that the Syndicate was behind them. Judging by some of the marks on the page, it seems that the full thing was actually hidden in that store you investigated with Inspector Fox, but it must've torn on some of the glass. So, from the fact that the Syndicate ransacked each of the places they broke into, they seem to have a big interest in this Lomasi gem."

"The Syndicate, huh?" I said aloud "I think we might have some competition then. Do we have any leads on where the page has gone?"

"Again, I thought you might say that. I've tracked down some of the Syndicate controlled ships and their routes and I found a 'top priority' shipment headed out of Paris."

"And where is it going?" asked Murray.

Bentley turned his head back to us for his reponse.

"Cuba"

With that, we headed for the airport and set off the beautiful islands of Cuba. Before we left, Bentley managed to dig up a little information on our first target of the Syndicate and possible holder of that full page of the Thievius Racoonus. Alejandro Da Fico.

A cold blooded reptile of a thief, literally, this slithering cobra had already seized control of most of the Carribean shipping lanes and was only becoming more powerful by the day. Originally a stowaway on one of the ships from his native country of Africa, he landed on the island of Cayo Largo just 18 years old and gradually built up a gang that started from petty thievery, to a full on organisation of crime. This was more than enough to catch the attention of the Syndicate which Alejandro quickly became a key member of, directing the routes of all Syndicate controlled ships and transport. Including the ship that we're after.

Bentley also told me that he's a keen fighter and a master of the Shequan fighting style. Fitting for a snake to master something called "Snake Fist". Despite this training of his, we couldn't let that put us off. If we're going to gather more information on the location and abilities of the Lomasi gem, as well as it's connection to me, it looked like we'd have to see Alejandro in person. Who knows? Maybe Murray would be able to get some fighting practise with him...

Meanwhile, things weren't as clear cut for a certain inspector of Interpol all the way back in Paris.

Carmelita sat at her desk, peering down at documents and photographs of what had happened the previous night. The night that one certain constable vanished with no particular reason as to why. She had received the call from HQ that her partner was spotted in the Chief's office, looking at classfied and important documents, then suddenly fled the scene with an unknown accomplice. Although too late to see it herself, Carmelita had gotten every record of the event possible and had begun an investigation. And it only kept coming back to one horrible thought. She didn't want to admit it, but was Sly no longer her ideal vision of him? Had he regained his memory and gone back to being a petty thief?

No, not petty. Sly was probably one of the greatest thieves that Carmelita had ever seen, perhaps even one of the best Interpol had hunted after. Perhaps it was because he was such a challenge that she was so persistent on catching him. But, was it to prove to her superiors that she was a good cop or...because she just wanted to see him again?

It couldn't be possibly be that. Thieves are law-breakers and as such should be brought to justice. A relationship between a cop and a thief would be going against what Carmelia worked and stood for. And yet...there was something about that ringtail that made her jump at the chance to go after him.

She shook her head and looked over the records. As she glanced over the records, she noticed that the shop had reported that a vase had been broken and that it's contents were missing. Apparently, some antique page of a book. Carmelita flicked through the file and found a picture of the said vase and book page in photographs supplied by the store owner. Her eyes went wide at what she saw. It was a page from that book that belonged to Sly! If he had regained his memory, it was no wonder he was a possible suspect. She knew that Sly took anything related to his family very seriously and if this book was involved, it surely must've been enough to jog his memory!

Satisfied she had found the cause of his disappearence, Carmelita met with her Chief to try and persuade him to let her chase after their renegade cop. Lucky for her, he approved.

"I'm gonna find you, ringtail..." she said to herself with a grin.

After a flight that seemed to last forever, the gang and I finally arrived on the island of Cayo Largo. As per usual with our operations, we managed to bag a safehouse not far from Alejandro's main office. I remmber thinking that the place must have some useful information sealed up in there and it didn't take long for Bentley to think the same. Before we knew it, Murray and me were sat infront of Bentley's infamous projector screen as he went through the plan.

"OK, here's what I've been able to discern about Mr. Da Fico's operation so far. From inside this office building, he's able to use radio signals to control the shipping lanes on at least this half of the globe! Each Syndicate ship has a special receiver that not only receives orders on where to go, but also communication signals as well.

Our first job will be to steal one of these receivers from the Syndicate ship that's docked out there right now. If Sly can bring it back here in one piece, and I'm sure he can, we'll be able to listen in on Alejandro as he talks with his superiors. Then we'll be able to gather some information on this Lomasi gem. Let's get to it!"

And then, there I was, perched on top of the crow's nest of the Syndicate ship. From Bentley's presentation, I'd learned that the deck was littered with guards and crew members and they only really reduced their numbers at nighttime. So, Bentley had me get up here before night fall so I could wait until the right moment to jump down and swipe the receiver. And, to be honest, I wasn't really enjoying the heist so far. I mean, would you enjoy yourself if you were a master thief forced to sit high above a guarded ship at night with chilling breezes blowing into you every 5 seconds while you waited what seemed like forever?

Yeah, didn't think so.

Anyway, the guards finally did leave to grab a caffeine boost for the rest of their shift, leaving me to stand up and stretch after staying in that small space for so long and then slide down a rope to the deck. It didn't take me long to find the receiver, nestled in amongst the rest of the brudge equipment. I briefly looked it over before grabbing it and running out onto the deck. And right into a rather tall and muscular guard.

"I don't think you belong in this crew, little friend" he growled, his heavy accent almost rumbling the decks it was so deep.

"Well, I was just here to have a look at your wonderful ship here" I said "And, it seems to look lovely. So, I'll just be going now and..."

"Oh, you're not going anywhere! Grab him!"

That's the thing about tall and muscular guards. Always resorting to violence instead of words. So naturally all it took was a dodge to the right and the guard crashed into his friend behind me, falling down together in a crumpled heap. The rest of his friends however didn't seem to like this (can't imagine why) and quickly surrounded me. That was, until a large pink object I could out of the corner of my eye came bursting into the scene with a triumphant cry of "EARTHQUAKER!!!"

A few punches and throws later, Murray had taken care of the guards and the both of us dragged them to the bridge to hide them.

"Nice work, pal. If you hadn't come along, I think I'd probably be meeting Alejandro myself right now. And not under ideal circumstances" I said with a grin.

"No problem, Sly! Now, come on. Bentley waiting for us!"

Taking care to leave them the little 'parting gift' of a Cooper symbol, the two of us made our way back to the safehouse and presented Bentley with the goods.

"Here you are, sir" I joked in a waiter's accent "One single receiver from a Syndicate ship, ready for mis-use!"

"Well, at least your French accent is better than your Italian one..." Bentley sighed as he looked over the device.

"Jeez Sly, did you have to talk in that waiter's voice? You've made me all hungry!" Murray groaned.

"Yes! This should be perfect!" Bentley suddenly exclaimed "Now, let's see if I can tune into the right frequency..."

It was early morning when the sun shone into my eyes and woke me up. I looked around the safehouse and noticed Murray, snoring away in a chair. Bentley was still at work with the receiver and probably had been doing so through the night. I grinned. Some things never change.

I yawned and went over to him, asking about the receiver.

"Well, it took a long time, but I managed to wire it into Da Fico's personal frequencies. Now, when he talks with his boss we'll be able to listen in and possibly find out some information about his information on the Lomasi gem"

Just then, the receiver started beeping frantically and a small light on the top of it started flashing.

"Oh, speak of the devil..." Bentley mumbled "Sly, put these on!"

I was handed a pair of headphones and as I put them on, I could already hear some distorted speech coming through. After a little adjustment from Bentley, an heavy African accent suddenly came on the line. It was definitely Alejandro.


	3. Cuba: Part Duo

**Sly Cooper & The Lomasi Kiwidinok**

Chapter 2: Cuba Part Duo

_"Hey, hey! Don't take that tone with me, boss man! You might be my 'superior', but I've gotten your shipping lanes better than ever and you repay me by accusing me of keeping that stupid page thing for myself? Hmph! If I had a reason to get rid of it, I would've sold it weeks ago! Not that that would do any good for me...do you really think some of the guys around this island would pay for a mouldy old piece of paper?_

_Look, the page is still in my office, under lock, key and guard. So don't you worry about thing, OK? When it's time, I'll send it over in one of my ships and you can do whatever the hell you want with it. And yeah, I'm keepin' it away from any 'rivals'. And yes, especially those Cooper chumps you warned me about. You can imagine what they'd try and do if they found out it could..."_

A sudden burst of static cut off Alejandro's voice and the receiver promptly shut off. Even a quick few adjustments from Bentley couldn't get the signal back. Luckily we'd heard enough to get at least some idea of what Alejandro was planning to do. But, what did he mean by what we would try to do if we found out something about the Lomasi gem? Steal it from wherever it was before they did? Destroy it before they had a chance to? Or maybe...

Well, I didn't really understand what he meant. I'd leave that little mystery for Bentley to solve. All I was interested in was the information Alejandro had in his office and, from the sounds of it, the rest of the pages that the Syndicate had on the Lomasi gem. It was only a matter of minutes before Bentley sat us down for another one of his plans.

"Alright guys, here's the situation. Alejandro is holding an ancient page of the Thievius Raccoonus inside his office under heavy guard. Not only that, but it appears the other members of the Syndicate also have some sort of information on the Lomasi gem, probably other pages. If this is the case, we don't want to be wasting any time on a certain member and that means we need to strike now. Time for us to get this page and get the heck out of here!

"First, Murray will take out the guards posted in the area in front of the building and then break open the locks on the doors so me and Sly can get in. Once we're inside, Murray, we'll need you to get the van ready and keep an eye out and alert us if any more guards show up. Then, Sly and I will get inside the office and search the place for the page. If any security systems are there, I'll have to disable them first before we get in of course. Then, as soon as we have the page and anything that looks of value, we'll evac the office and drive away! Time is of the essence and we need to make sure this goes down without a hitch or the other members will be alerted to our presence. Let's get to work!"

We prepared everything we needed for the heist over the next few hours. I made sure to carry a larger backpack, Murray got out his driving gloves (claiming they'd make him more menacing) and Bentley got his wheelchair ready with all the various gadgets and gizmos that we'd need. Then, it was time to move.

I peered round behind the gate to be confronted with a sight of almost 20 guards. And these weren't your standard goons. They looked trained, alert...brutal. Alejandro certainly was equipped when it came to security.

"You sure you can take these guys out, Murray? They look pretty..."

"Dangerous? Violent? B-Bloodthirsty, even?" Bentley stammered, looking at the brutes stomping around.

"Guys, come on! You know that there isn't a force yet that can stop 'The Murray'! Give me 2 minutes and they'll all be toast!" Murray triumphantly boasted.

"Want me to keep score?" I asked with a grin.

"Need I remind you that we're on a job here?!" Bentley whispered harshly "Just take them out and we can leave! You know as well as I do these guys mean business..."

"Relax, Bentley. We'll be out in no time" I said "You're up, Murray. Go for it!"

And he did. Big time.

Punches, kicks, flips, 'Thunderflops', 'Haymakers' and probably hundreds of moves I never knew Murray learnt were being dished out one after the other. And Murray still managed to dish out his classic mocking lines to all his foes. When it was all over and we went over to him, Bentley and I were...shocked, to be honest.

"Murray...where the heck did that come from?" I asked him, bewildered.

"Well, Bentley said not to waste any time, right? So I didn't" he replied. "Now, get inside already! The door's open for you and I want to be gone before that Alejandro guy shows up with more goons..."

"No worries, pal" I said "Even if more do show up, they're no match for you, right?"

"Of course not!" Murray exclaimed with a big grin.

"Come on, Sly. Alejandro probably isn't that far away! Get the van ready Murray, we'll be out soon!" Bentley called back as the two of us headed inside.

The door to Alejandro's office creaked open as we crept inside the darkened room. The lights shining in from outside cast strange shapes and outlines on the walls and furniture and the whole place just felt creepy as heck. The walls were all white and completely blank except for a few pictures. The desk in the centre of the room was pristine and spotless. Obviously, Alejandro was a guy who was organised. Another reason why I wanted to be quick and leave before he "organised" some more goons to go after us.

Bentley flicked on his torch and got to work searching in Alejandro's desk. I, on the other hand, was searching his file cabinets, behind pictures, even the walls themselves. I wasn't even sure what were looking for of for how long, but Bentley soon called me over in a hushed voice. Looked like he found something.

"It's a small bit of paper, looks like there's a combination of some kind written on it"

"Which means that there's probably a safe in here somewhere" I said "Seems a bit weird that Alejandro would go through all the trouble of getting all those goons outside and then leaving the combination to something just sitting in his desk..."

"Voice your suspicions about this later! Just find that safe and grab whatever's inside so we can leave!" Bentley whispered in a hushed voice.

"No problem, pal" I said with a grin. It didn't take long to find the safe, hidden behind a picture of Alejandro himself.

Seems like the most obvious places are the favourite ones among criminals.

I entered the combination carefully and opened the thick steel door. It surprised me what was inside it. Just 2 single pieces of paper, laid there ready for the taking. I picked them up carefully looked them over, realising that one of them was a page from the Thievius Raccoonus. The other one seemed to be a part of...a map, or a fragment of a document perhaps.

"Bentley, I think I have a another puzzle for you solve" I said as I handed him the documents.

"Intriguing...it's definitely part of a map, but it's just a fragment. Unusual indeed..." he murmured.

"But still, I think this is a little odd. I mean, we haven't had a single hitch so far and yet we know how organised this guy is. Doesn't that strike you as a little...weird?" I asked.

"Not as weird as coming back to one's office and finding two thieves inside".

The voice suddenly made me look up and I was greeted with Alejandro Da Fico, standing in the hallway. The cobra adjusted one of his leather gloves as he came slowly in, wearing a dark brown suit and bow-tie. His cold yellow eyes glared at us as he extended one of his hands towards Bentley.

"I would appreciate it if you handed those back now. I always hate it when thieves handle my property. You see, I had a feeling the Cooper gang would try and get in here, once I found my men tied up on board with your 'calling card'. Not so wise to let a Syndicate member to know you're about, especially in a situation like this. Don't you agree, raccoon?"

"And I would appreciate it if you let me and my friend walk out of here with _my_ property!" I argued. "Who do you think this page really belongs to, Alejandro? Now why don't you just..."

"Stand here and let you walk out of my office with _my_ share of the pages?!" he snapped back "No, I don't think I shall. In fact, I've already called the police to arrest you. And don't think that they'll arrest me too. They can't touch me, they have nothing on my operations with the Syndicate, and I'll have the pleasure of watching you get thrown in a jail cell to rot!"

Alejandro chuckled to himself and extended him hand again.

"Now then, the contents of the safe please..."

If what he said was true, then we didn't have a lot of time to get out of there. Things looked bad and worse, I knew that the police would still be a little upset over what I did in Paris. And yet, I couldn't help but feel my heart flutter a little. If he called the police...did it mean that Carmelita could be on her way? Would it give me a chance to explain everything, to let her know I was OK? So many ideas of what to say kept pouring into my thoughts and I knew that the possibility of her turning up was slim. But, still...

Bentley's sudden exclamation broke me out of my daydream.

"Sly! Look out!"

I looked up to see Alejandro lunging at me, eyes glaring. But it only took me a second to realise that he wasn't after me. He was after the page in Bentley's hand. I growled and held my ground as Alejandro's lunge was suddenly stopped by my cane. I struggled to keep my ground...this guy was good! My feet started to slip as he just kept on pushing forwards to try and get by me. It was then I realised why he was a master of Shequan.

Alejandro jabbed his foot quickly into my shin, knocking me off-balance, before jabbing his hands quickly at my chest. I remember flying backwards and landing near Bentley. Not only was he strong, but he had the speed needed to pull of Shequan. I quickly got back to my feet again to try and defend Bentley, but Alejandro still managed to knock me back at least twice more.

Things were tense. The cops were on their way and there was no way me and Bentley could get past this guy without handing over what he wanted. Fortunately for us, we didn't have to wait to long for a solution to our problem to come through the door. Literally.

"RARGH!!"

A huge crash and the splintering of wood rang through the air and the next thing I knew, the Shequan master was in a crumpled heap on the floor, knocked out and surrounded by debris from a chair. Murray stood tall over his fallen opponent, a huge grin on his face.

"He might be a master of some weird Kung Fu stuff, but he sure never saw 'The Murray' coming!"

I grinned as I pulled myself up using my cane.

"It's good to see you, Murray...how did you-"

"You guys were taking forever, so I knew something was up. I could hear banging and yells and I could see that Alejandro dude blocking the door. So, I..."

"Decided to hit him with a wooden chair?" finished Bentley.

"Yeah, pretty much!" Murray exclaimed "Are you sure you're OK, Sly? You look like you took quite a beating..."

"I'm fine, just a few bruises" I assured him. "Now, hurry! Let's get out of here before the cops show!"

And that's just what we did.

We took care to leave all of Alejandro's Syndicate documents strewn around his office when the police arrived before we hid and happily watched his arrest. The cars all surrounded the building and a dozen officers stormed inside to arrest the tied-up cobra. As we watched the scene, Bentley insisted we got going and leave before the cops found us but I wanted to make sure of something. I kept my eyes fixed on one particular car that hadn't had anyone leave it yet. I hoped deep down it was who I thought it could be. And my heart soared when it was.

Inspector Carmelita Fox, against all the odds, stepped out of that car and began talking with the other officers! The sun had just begun to come up and beamed all over the scene, almost giving her a sort of radiance, at least in my eyes. I smiled and instinctively leapt forward, only to be held back by Murray. I struggled to get free, but it was now use. Turning my head back to them, I scowled.

"Hey, let me go! I only just want to-"

"Sly, we can't! As soon as you go out there, you'll be arrested and thrown in jail along with Alejandro!" Bentley protested.

"But I..."

I started to speak, but paused lowered my head

"You'll get your chance to see her again soon, buddy" Murray said encouragingly "I know it!"

I nodded and agreed to leave. But...I still felt a little deflated. I knew my friends were right in my head, but I'd wanted to try and explain things to Carmelita so badly, I was disappointed I wouldn't get the chance to here. But still, we needed to go.

"Let's get going" I said. And with that, we left then area and the island, leaving Carmelita to pick up the pieces of our confrontation.

As Alejandro was taken away into the waiting police van, Carmelita was looking through the files strangely let out for them to find. She pondered why for a second, but discarded the thought and went back to reading, making notes as she went. So, Alejandro Da Fico was a member of the 'Syndicate' and they were stationed all across the globe. And from what she could gather, it looked like they were the ones responsible for the robberies in Paris! She smiled and shut the documents.

"Well, that takes care of that little mystery" she said aloud "Now, let's see what else is in here..."

Carmelita walked away from the desk and knelt down to examine the scene where Alejandro was found laying unconscious. And her eyes went wide at what she saw in the debris. A single, pristine, bright logo Cooper emblem. She grabbed it and checked it over to make sure it was genuine. When she realised it was, she smiled again. Sly was here! She had known that it would be a long shot following a rumour of a suspicious raccoon heading to this island, but it seemed to have paid off.

"The only question left is where you've gone..." Carmelita whisphered to herself as the emblem caught the sun's rays and cast a blue tint over the white and blank walls. Taking care to grab all of the documents, the inspector left knowing that what she held in her hand could lead her right to 'her criminal'.

After a long journey, we arrived back at Bentley's house and examined our loot. Although not much money-wise (well, would you call paper costly?), this stuff had some sort of importance to the Syndicate and a link to my family. We carefully unfolded the page from the safe and Bentley began to read.

"Looks like this was written by one of your ancestors, Sly. Someone by the name of Ahote Cooper. Seems he was only a boy when this was written. Jeez, this guy was from Native American times!"

"Well, what does it say?"

"Hang on, I need to run it through a translator. It's completely written in that weird writing we found before..."

Bentley wheeled himself over to the computer and the three of us peered at the screen as he read the text aloud.

"Father says have done something remarkable and terrifying. Something the others in my tribe are both in awe and in fear of the object just outside. The Lomasi Kiwidinok.

It is a beautiful thing, as radiant as the sun shines and more deep red the the most precious rubies my father has have ever taken. And yet, it's appearance doesn't even suggest the strange power that lies within it. With this gem, our tribe has abilities that out-do any that the Manifest Destiny believers have.

Father says the spirits are happy with out work and they have blessed the Lomasi. He said we can make our lives easier with it's abilities to heal, to make us strong. We can use it to fight off our attackers with it's strange light of power and he says it can even stop grief. Grief of the loss of a loved one. Although I don't believe how it works, father says that it can...bring back the dead"

Bentley froze and his mouth dropped a little when he read those words. Murray was pretty much the same, his eyes wide with disbelief. And me...I wasn't going to believe it.

"No, this has to be wrong. Nothing exists that could do that! Even if this thing does have..."

"Sly, it's perfectly possible! I mean, we've all known of the existence of black magic in Bad-Mojo machines. It's probably that white magic exists too!"

"Bentley, my ancestor was a boy when he wrote this. This is most likely to be a story told to him by his dad...like a fairy-tale!"

"Look, there's more coming through!" Murray exclaimed as he pointed at the screen. Bentley adjusted his glasses as he continued to read.

"I know it is true!" he continued "I saw it with my own eyes! The nice old woman, Abedabun. I had not seen her for weeks. Father said it was because she had gone away, but I knew that she had died. This saddened me a lot because I liked to listen to her stories. And just yesterday, I saw it happen. Abedabun was laid there on the ground as though she was asleep and the Lomasi was brought near her. There was a bright flash and then she opened her eyes and got up! It was like she really had been asleep all along! I was very happy when she woke up"

"Wow..." said Murray after a long pause "Guess that explains a lot..."

"Indeed" Bentley agreed "Something which can re-animate deceased matter is something that I think a lot of people would be after. No wonder the Syndicate were so determined to keep this a secret. Don't you think, Sly? Sly?"

I couldn't hear him. All I could think about were those 4 words, playing over and over in my mind. Bring back the dead. Bring. Back. The. Dead. Bring back...

I think that was the moment that my main reason to continue hunting down the Syndicate and going after this thing surfaced. I could only imagine the joy Ahote had felt, to see someone he knew and cared about magically wake up from death. Almost as if their passing was a bad dream...

I knew what that thing could do and I knew could end my bad dream. A bad dream that plagued me in my childhood and still affected me even today.

"Sly? You alright?" Murray asked. He nudged me a little in the arm, breaking me out of my trance.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Fine...just a lot of info to get my head 'round"

"You're telling me!" Bentley said "We need to get the rest of these pages to find out where the Lomasi gem is before the Syndicate manage to get to it!"

"Don't worry!" Murray exclaimed "Even if they did find out where it was, they're not match for the 3 of us, right?"

"Y-Yeah, of course..." I said absent-mindedly. Bentley looked at me with a worried expression.

"Are you you're alright?"  
I forced a smile and nodded.

"Yeah, never better. I think I just need to sleep..."

I quickly hurried away into my room, leaving the two of them unsatisfied with my response. But my brain was on other matters. I needed to first find Carmelita and explain my sudden disappearance from Paris. And then...well, I had to find another Syndicate member to get closer to this Lomasi gem.

If Ahote was right, if this thing could bring back the deceased...then could it do what I'd longed for as a child?

Could it really bring back Dad?


	4. An Important Memory

**Sly Cooper & The Lomasi Kiwidinok**

Chapter 3: An Important Memory

I didn't really know what my thoughts were to start with. For those next few hours after reading that journal, sitting on my bed, my head was spinning with thoughts, feelings, ideas...it was almost a blur. And to make things even more confusing, whilst all this was Lomasi business was flying around my brain, I was still trying to think of what to do when I ran into Carmelita again.

Although, I never showed it around the guys, I...well, I missed her to put it simply. Her voice, her laughter, her face...even just remembering the look she used to give me when she got suspicious of my ruse made me grin to myself a little. But, what would I say when I saw her? I could apologise to her, try to explain, but her boss could've convinced her that I was a thief again. And besides, would she even want to see me after what I'd done? I really, _really_, hoped so...

And then of course, there was the other thing...It had been something my younger self had wished for 6 long years and now the opportunity for it was staring me and my gang right in the face. I wondered. Why did the Syndicate have information on something as potentially world changing as the Lomasi gem? What could they possibly want from it? As far as I knew, resurrecting gemstones didn't tend to be helpful to a criminal organisation. Apart from the considerable wealth it could bring, of course.

I laid my head back on my pillow and closed my eyes. As I drifted into unconsciousness, I began to make out shapes, objects...something I remembered seeing a long time ago.

A memory...was it Italy?

_The Piazza De Ferrari of the city of Genoa on the Ligurian Coast of Italy. Alive with people going about their nightly leisures, leaving the shows of the Teatro Carlo Felice opera house, entering the restaurants for a nice meal and generally enjoying the city's delights and wonders. Unnoticed by the general public, 2 people in particular were enjoying the night more than most would. _

_The taller of the two was a middle-aged raccoon, a wide grin covering his face. His dark grey fur was shaggy and rough and a pipe hung loosely from the side of his mouth. His brilliant green eyes shone in the lights of the city around him, his blue jacket appearing faded and a bit scuffed around the edges. The collar had a small insignia in the shape of a raccoon's head and brown staff with golden hooked top was slung around his back on a black strap. The raccoon's blue cap suddenly slipped down over his face a little as he walked along. He laughed and looked upwards a small 3 year-old raccoon. His son who was sitting on his shoulders, happily bouncing along with his father's steps in awe at all of the strange and wonderful sights around him. His curious little eyes gazed upwards to the Teatro Carlo Felice as he tried to push himself higher using his daddy's cap to get a better look._

_"That one's really tall!" the little one exclaimed as he pointed upwards._

_"Yeah, it is isn't it?" the raccoon agreed with a grin, his voice a little rough but with a caring undertone "Almost up to the clouds, where the birds are"_

_The little one shook his head. "Not as tall as that. Or Mr McSw...McSwee..." he stuttered as he tried to pronounce the name of his father's friend and 'co-worker'. The raccoon chuckled and took his son off his shoulders, hugging him in his arms._

_"Yeah, Jim's a really tall guy, isn't he?" he said, nuzzling his son's nose with his own. The little one giggled and fidgeted in his father's arms before beaming at his daddy._

_"Yeah! I like Mr McSwe...Mr Jim" he concluded to avoid stuttering again. "He's really nice"_

_"And you wouldn't think that just by looking at him..," the raccoon said with a grin._

_"Just because I'm tall, Conner, doesn't mean I can't hear the little people below me!"_

_The raccoon turned his head around to see Jim McSweeney, former brawn of his old Cooper Gang and full-time friend, striding towards him with a wide grin on his face._

_"And I see you have company!" Jim said as he approached the little one in Conner's arms. "Hello there, little Sly. Wow, haven't you grown since I last saw you?"_

_"Not as tall as you, Mr Jim!" Sly said with a giggle as McSweeney ruffled his fur._

_"And yet, you still manage to be as cute as ever" chuckled Jim. Conner turned to his friend._

_"It's really good to see you, Jim. It's definitely been a while"_

_"Tell me about it" Jim said, motioning Conner to walk with him. "Ever since our final job, it's been one long chase between us and the cops. At least you have the kid to prove you're not up to no good" he said with a smile. "We should've met up sooner. I hear the wine's very nice on this particular stretch of coast"_

_"I'm really sorry about taking so long, but you know how things have gotten complicated since Moreau..."_

_"Hey, don't mention that. This is supposed to be something good we're doing, isn't it? You've brought your little boy on his first trip overseas and he's obviously enjoying himself" Jim replied, pointing out the little raccoon trying to grab his father's cap. Conner smiled and placed the cap on Sly's head before turning back to Jim._

_"But, that's not the only reason you called me here, is it? Is this about the whole...vault situation?" Conner whispered._

_"That's already taken of. I hid the map in this place, see and...I think it might hold something for you as well" Jim said, pausing for a second before pointing out a bench to sit on away from the prying eyes of the public. The two sat down and Jim hushed his voice._

_"Listen, Conner. I know you've been looking up information on that...thing. I personally think you're crazy to believe anything about it, it's all witchcraft and stories! I mean, the only mention you've heard of this thing is in some thing from those Indian guys..."_

_"Native Americans" Conner corrected._

_"Whatever...the point is, you've been going well out of your way to go after something which might not even be real in the first place._

_"This may be my only chance, Jim! If it's real, and I can save her..." he said, pausing "...I will take that chance. Besides, we've known magic actually exists ever since that one time in Prague..." Conner said with chuckle. _

_"Yeah, that General sure wasn't expecting us!" Jim agreed. He paused again before speaking up. "I was actually kinda hoping you hadn't lost faith in this whole affair. 'Cos I've managed to find something inside here" he said, raising his palm. A picture of a building was etched into the skin in the form of a tattoo. The building was similar to the architecture of the area with domed roofs, pillars and arches but something about it looked...off-putting, like it didn't belong._

_"I've never seen a building like that in...well, anything" Conner said "What is it?"_

_"It's a museum actually. A museum that has no real sense being there. No-one really goes in there to see stuff, it's more of a giant vault for important stuff. A _lot_ of ancient stuff. "_

_"And you went through the trouble to find that out and engrave it into your palm, because?" Conner asked, puzzled at his friend's actions. _

_"Because, not only is our map hidden inside there, there are huge reams of text on that thing. Took a look at the manifest when I hid the map and they're all full of stuff on that gem. Might come in useful if you can get inside somehow, don't you think?"_

_Conner's eyes went wide at Jim's proposal._

_"Jim, I only came here on vacation! I'm not exactly equipped with a plan for a robbery, I don't have anything apart from my cane and I can't go breaking into some museum while I have my son with me!"_

_"Then leave him with me!" Jim said with a smile "I've already been a babysitter once, once more ain't gonna kill me. And Conner, you're the Master Thief here. You don't need plans or tools, just your cane and some guts!"_

_Sly looked confusingly between the two, unsure of what the men were talking about, before focusing his attention back onto the tall building he saw before, squinting to see the top of it. Conner looked at his son for a moment. Never having to question why bad things in the world happened, why she died when he was so young. With a smile, Conner gently placed Sly into McSweeney's arms._

_"Alright, let's do it" he said with a nod. Sly looked at him, puzzled._

_"Daddy, where are you going?"_

_"I'll only be gone for a little while Sly, I promise. Just for a little bit. Jim'll take care of you."_

_"Daddy..." Sly said sadly, his eyes almost looking mournful. Conner sighed and picked up Sly, giving him a tight hug. Ever since she died, they'd grown so close together and it hurt either one of them to leave the other behind. Sly sniffed a little as Conner gently put him back down with McSweeney._

_"You be good, OK? I promise I won't be long" he said, kissing his son gently on the forehead with a smile. "I love you"._

_And with that, Conner sneaked away into the darkness in pursuit of what he hoped were the keys to bringing her back. _

_Sly looked after him, something which McSweeney noticed quickly. "So..." the walrus said, trying to start a conversation "I hear you're going to be reading your dad's old book soon"_

_The prospect of a more positive topic caused Sly to turn around to Jim and nod with a smile._

_"Good" Jim nodded in agreement "Make sure you look up everything in there, it'll come in handy"_

_Sly nodded again._

_"Can I be as good as Daddy?"_

_"Of course! You'll be one of the best! Maybe even better than your Daddy one day..." Jim said with a wink "Don't tell him I said that"_

_Sly giggled and suddenly jumped as a loud bang went off behind him. He spun around to see a firework blaze into life, green and blue shining in his eyes._

_"Ooooo...."_

_"Yeah...they're something, aren't they?" Jim said softly._

_"We have to tell Daddy about them" Sly murmured, hypnotised by the lights in the sky._

_"We will. Maybe he'll be back in time to see them himself"_

_Sly nodded in agreement, laughing a firework in the shape of a star exploded and illuminated the streets of the Piazza De Ferrari._

I woke with an cry out seeing that firework explode, almost throwing the blankets off myself in the process. I sat up and groaned, rubbing my eyes. What the heck was that? Was that when Dad took me to Italy? I only knew that he did from my old journals I made at the orphanage about it. Dad took me to a big town and we met McSweeney there. Dad went off to do something I'd passed off at the time at something adults had to do, came back and hour or so later and took me home a few days after that. And that was years and years ago...how did I remember everything so vividly? Everything McSweeney and my father said to one another, the reason I was taken to Italy in the first place...it all made sense now.

The Lomasi gem must've been something my father had gone after and he must've written something like the old texts in that museum about it in the Thievius Raccoonus, explaining the journal entry from Ahote. But...why was Dad going after it in the first place? And who was this person he wanted to save?

Murray abruptly interrupted my thoughts as he opened the door. "Hey Sly, you OK? I heard some yelling and I thought you might stubbed your toe or something..."

"Huh? Oh, it was nothing Murray. Just a bit of a crazy dream..."

"Oh, that's good to hear" he said with a smile "I was worried for a minute there. Anyway, I wanted to ask you...can I take a camera with us?"

"A camera?" I asked

"Yeah, I've always wanted to get a photo of that thing that looks like a blown up football stadium"

"A picture of what now? And why/where are we going?" I asked, rubbing my eyes again.

"Bentley tracked down another Syndicate member. We're going to Rome, man!"

And so, a few hours later, the gang and I were all headed out for the city of Rome. And boy, was I looking forward to this job, as the guy we were after deserves to get robbed. Tony "The Killer" B.

As the guys already know, I've already had my fair share of this guy's ego. After our old tenor friend, Don Octavio, was busted for the pollution of the water with tar, Tony fled back to Rome to escape persecution where he surprisingly managed to actually create his self-proclaimed title "Mayor of Organised Crime" over just a few short months. I'm not sure whether it was his "charming" personality or not, but from originally hiring small numbers of goons, he now runs the streets with police having no sign of catching this ego-fuelled dog.

According to Bentley's research, Tony's been spotted coming in and out of the Coliseum itself. Whilst it may seem stupid to hide in such an obvious place, it's probably one of the few places the police would ever look. I'm actually a little excited that I get to steal from such a historically important place! And Murray sure is excited to get a photo of the thing too.

How an ego-maniacal guy like Tony been trusted with a page fragment about the Lomasi gem is anyone's guess, but the more fragments the Syndicate have, the more likely they are to get to it before I do. Looks like I was on my way back to Italy. And then, I'd be one step closer to finding the gem...and my father.


End file.
